1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus connected to a network and having a function to transmit and receive print data, an image processing method, a program, and a storage medium.
2. Description of the Related Art
Storing image data input from an image input device in a secondary storage device of an image output device as files allows a user to extract and repeatedly output whenever he/she wants. Such a function to store, in the secondary storage device of the image output device, input data in the format of files for the purpose of reuse is called a box function. In addition, a file system for storing, in the secondary storage device of the image output device, input data in the format of files for the purpose of reuse is called a box.
The files in the box are bitmap data read by a document scanner and PDL data received from a host computer connected over a network. It becomes difficult to search list information of file names and thumbnails, etc., for a target file when the number of files stored in the box increases.
Accordingly, user-friendliness is dramatically improved when a user inputs a keyword included in the target file from a UI (User Interface) to display a list of only files that matches the keyword using a search.
When the search target file is PDL (Page Description Language) data, a drawing object to be printed as character has been generally described in the PDL data as font information accompanied by character codes. It is therefore possible to directly search the PDL data for a character string. Moreover, even when data is converted to a format to lose character code information when being stored in the box, by separately storing only the character code information at the time of storing in the box and storing the same in an accompanying manner as meta data, it becomes possible to search the data stored in the box.
On the other hand, even in data to be used for PDL printing, the drawing object data to be printed as character is not accompanied by character code information in some cases.
One of the cases is when print data is developed into a bitmap on a host computer. When normal PDL data is used for output, image development is performed by use of a drawing parameter unique to an image output device. Therefore, an unexpected defective image may be produced. Occurrence of interference between a dot pattern drawing of an original image and a halftone unique to the image output device can be mentioned, for example. Moreover, depending on the contents of PDL data, developing the PDL data on the host computer may result in faster processing. On such an occasion, the user can select a mode for image development on the host computer.
Moreover, there is a case where a device (raster image processor, hereinafter referred to as “RIP”) that performs image development and a device that performs output using a developed image are separately provided. However, even in such a case, if the box function is equipped on the image output device, character code information cannot be added to data in the box.
In such a situation, since no character code information to be used for a search remains in data to be received by the image output device, it is impossible to add meta data using received character codes.